It’s hard to imagine, that we will have a hot balmy summer since spring has practically passed us by with barely a dry day. With Easter behind us, we are full steam ahead towards Festival season.

With Glastonbury having their Fallow year to give the site a chance to recover, you will be looking at other destinations for this year. However with two years to plan Glastonbury 2019, you can be sure that it will be a year to remember! Check out The UK festivals calendar for 2018 (www.thefestivalcalendar.co.uk).

Heading off for your first year at University?

This is often the first time, you have been away from home for any length of time. Freshers’ Week can be very daunting however, with so much to look forward to it is also very exciting.

It’s worth remembering that all Fresher Students are in the same boat – it’s their first time at this University too, so if you don’t know anyone – be friendly and helpful and try to be confident as this will help you make friends quickly. Aside from school, most long term friendships and even relationships start at University.

Use the week wisely to find your way around campus. Discover what else goes on in your department and remember where your main lecture halls are located. Begin filling in your academic diary with your rota and collect campus maps and useful information sheets from main reception.

Ensure that your personal property is always safe i.e. laptops IPad’s, gaming stations etc. should always be put away out of sight. Ensure that all windows on lower floors are shut and doors are locked when leaving your accommodation. Arrange insurance or ask your parents to check their household insurance as it may cover such items.

Meetings with your tutors and lecturers are important, be sure to attend. First impressions last – so get a full 8 hours’ kip in before these meetings – a hang over and bedhead is not a great look!

Register with a local Doctor and Dentist and explore the extracurricular clubs or join the gym to keep those pangs of homesickness away.

If you are in Halls of Residence, then you have probably packed some snacks, but take a good look around campus and find the bars, shops and restaurants. You will need energy food, especially if you are going to burn the candle at both ends during Freshers’ busy social calendar!

On campus, you will have your student pass but this won’t be good enough as proof of age if you are enjoying a night out on the town. My ID card is widely accepted in bars, clubs and restaurants. Accredited to the PASS Proof of age scheme, it is nationally recognised and supported by the Home Office, The National Police Chief Council and the Security Industry Authority. Assurance to Landlords and club owners that you are old enough to buy alcohol.

With so many products with age restrictions for example, your emergency first aid kit – Ibuprofen or Paracetamol and of course re-hydration products, MY ID Card is the safest choice for the chemist, supermarket, petrol station, local pub and just about anywhere requiring a Photo ID to prove your age.

Of course, money is going to be tight so you will want to save a penny or two wherever possible. If you lost your Passport or Driving Licence on a night out, you will have to stump up £86.00 to replace it with up to a three weeks for it to arrive.

My ID Card from just £15.00, is a much cheaper option with delivery usually within five working days. Furthermore, you will receive 12 months’ membership to My ID rewards, enabling you to buy shopping cards with discounts from 3% to 15% across the leading supermarkets and many top named high street stores.

Most of the cards are re-loadable too – How great would it be if Mum could load credit onto your supermarket card so you don’t go hungry or even worse… thirsty!

It is not compulsory to drink yourself under the table every night, after all it’s not one big party, you chose University so that you could broaden your academic knowledge and gain those all-important qualifications for your chosen career path. Don’t waste this fantastic opportunity but do make sure you have lots of fun along the way. Freshers’ Week only happens once – ENJOY!

If you’re one of the many UK students waiting for your A-level grades, you’ll be counting down the hours until results day. Whether you’ve aced it and secured a place in your top choice or ended up going through clearing, you’re going to have a lot of questions on your mind about your soon-to-be ‘home’ town.

One question you’ll almost certainly want some answers to is, ‘Where’s the best nightlife?’ (and how to get in to all those amazing bars, pubs and clubs. Tip: you’ll need a proof of age card like My ID Card). We’ve looked at the results of the Which? Student Survey (including the opinion of 11,000 students from 115 universities) to give you the lowdown on some of the best university cities the UK for nightlife.

Newcastle

There’s a reason why those Geordies are so cheerful; they’ve got access every type of nightlife you can imagine. From clubbing in Digital, to cocktails in Madame Koo, to craft beers on the Quayside, to comedy at The Stand – this north-eastern city will not disappoint (as long as you remember your proof of age card).

Priced at only £15, My ID Card is an official proof of age card. It’s accredited by PASS, the UK’s national proof of age accreditation scheme, and fully endorsed by official organisations such as the Home Office and The Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO). Because PASS carries these endorsements, the security industry trusts our proof of age cards, meaning the door staff at venues, clubs and bars across the whole of the UK will recognise the authenticity of your My ID Card. My ID Card will also be recognised as valid ID by leading ID scanning machines. Read more →

The season of sizzling sausages, mojitos and late balmy nights is happening right now, and you want your BBQ party to be one of the best nights of the summer, right? So we’ve made you a handy list of things you need to prep for your tropical party. From boozy ice buckets, to your PASS ID card to take to the supermarket, we’ve done the thinking for you so that all you need to concentrate on is having fun.

Meat and salad (don’t forget the buns!)

Keep it simple with burgers and sausages, or experiment with marinated chicken legs and spicy ribs if you’re feeling more adventurous. You could even try a seafood barbecue if you fancy giving your party a Mediterranean twist. Stock up on charcoal too – the self lighting bags are the easiest.

Ice bucket for drinks. Oh, and the drinks of course

There’s nothing worse than a warm beer, or worse still a tepid wine (sick mask emoji). Be kind to you and your guests and fill a bucket with ice and very cold water to keep your bottles in. Let’s be honest, there’s never enough room in the fridge for all that meat and booze. When you’re buying your drinks, don’t go without your PASS ID card, which you’ll need if you’re asked to prove your age. PASS ID cards are easy to apply for and are accepted in supermarkets, bars, pubs, restaurants and clubs.

Sun cream

Pink isn’t a good look, and you want to preserve that beautiful skin don’t you? Add a bottle of factor 30 to your trolley so none of your friends rock that late night lobster look. Read more →

Festival Fever – Save the Date.

You could take your passport to the festival – or your driving licence. But that’s risky. Where are you going to keep it safe? Is it worth leaving it in your tent for a not so-friendly visitor to take?

May Bank Holiday is set to be scorcher, what better way to chill out than planning your Festival calendar and your ID options.

“What Happens with the Hens Stays with the Hens”

Yes that final big party weekend away with the girls before you sweetly say “I DO”

Some choose to go abroad but the falling pound and rising air travel charges can often make the overall cost unreachable for some and we all know that the bride, wants as many of her “Besties” with her as possible to really make the party go with a swing!

The UK has some fantastic cities and towns which can really set the scene for making a most memorable and explosive Hen Weekend.

It’s been looming for a while and the deadline is getting closer. Sadly the promise of summer is a still a little way off, and if you’re at university it might be time to face the music and get your dissertation written now. With deadlines on the horizon, sometimes it’s nice to take five minutes out to think about how you can enjoy your time once your dissertation is finished. Here are some ideas if you have a few moments to dream in between writing paragraphs…

A trip to the beach. You can feel the sand beneath your toes as you picture sunny days and swimming in the sea. Even if it’s not on warmer climes, you could still look forward to a break in a fun town like Brighton, Blackpool or Newquay. You won’t want to miss out on the beachfront partying though, so you’ll need to make sure you have a proof of age card if you’re planning on any seaside drinks or clubbing

The pub. A long lazy afternoon… and evening with friends would be a welcome break to all that studying. The last thing you’ll need is being refused a drink at the bar, so have your proof of age card at the ready so you can relax

How about seeing a film at the cinema? After spending night after night looking at your Mac or PC, wouldn’t it be great to have some welcome relief watching a film that isn’t related to your dissertation subject for a change? If you’re blessed with young-looking genes, having a proof of age card will ensure that you don’t get turned away at the ticket desk for being too young for an 18 certificate film

For a real celebration, a European trip away could be right up your street. There are bargains to be found on cheap flights to Barcelona, Paris and load of other cool destinations in Europe. Get a few friends together, book a cheap B&B, and have a couple of nights away… you’ve worked hard for it after all

The weather is getting sunnier, the Easter eggs and chocolate bunnies are out in force in all the stores, which tells you that the Easter weekend is fast approaching. Although traditionally the bank holiday tends to be a washout, you won’t want your social plans to be a washout too, so it’s well worth making sure that you’ve got your proof of age ID PASS card in your wallet for every eventuality.

After all, the last thing you’ll want to do is stay home eating the leftover chocolate when all your friends have got into the bar or club – and you haven’t.

Whatever your Easter plans over the weekend, you’ll need proof of age to get into the clubs and bars. Not forgetting any alcohol or e-cigarettes. Plus, if you’re planning on getting in to watch an 18+ film if the weather does turn as a bank holiday often does, you won’t want to be turned away for forgetting your ID.

At only £15 for your My ID PASS card, it’s a small price to pay when there’s some serious pre-exam Easter partying coming up over the next weekend. Read more →

Do you identify as non-binary? Now you can apply for a proof of age card without having to state your gender.

My ID Card recently changed its application form and provides a non-gender specific proof of age card for those who identify as pangender, intergender, androgyne, genderfluid, agender or any other non-binary group. My ID Card is an official, PASS-accredited proof of age card that’s fully endorsed by the Home Office and The Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO).

A positive change for everyone

The change has been introduced following a recent request from the father of a teenager who is non-binary. Keith Farnish was frustrated that other ID card providers asked for gender or a gendered prefix such as Mr/Miss/Mrs/Ms on their application form, and that this might appear on the card itself, possibly alienating non-binary individuals. Mx – the preferred title of some non-binary people – is not commonly offered as an option.

Gender boxes have now been removed from the My ID Card application form in order to become more inclusive and gender does not appear on the proof of age card itself.

Speaking in a recent interview with Buzzfeed, Farnish said: Read more →